Senator Collins Secures Funding Increase for Special Diabetes Program
Washington, D.C. –U.S. Senator Susan Collins, Vice Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee and a member of the Senate Health Committee, announced that she secured a provision in the March 8th funding package that was signed into law last week to reauthorize the Special Diabetes Program (SDP) through December 31, 2024, at an annual rate of approximately $160 million per year – a roughly $10 million increase from current funding levels. This is the first funding increase for SDP in 20 years.
“Renewal of the Special Diabetes Program will help to accelerate the progress we have made over the past two decades to treat, and one day cure, Type 1 diabetes, as well as continue much-needed support, education, and diabetes treatment in Native American and Alaska Native communities,” said Senator Collins. “I am also pleased that our bipartisan efforts have resulted in continuation of the Special Diabetes Program and an overdue increase. I will continue to champion investments that support Americans living with this disease."
“JDRF is thrilled the Special Diabetes Program has been renewed until December 2024—and with a much-needed increase in funding—ensuring that critical type 1 diabetes (T1D) research continues,” said Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation CEO Aaron Kowalski, Ph.D. “This renewal would not have been possible without the tireless work of Senate Diabetes Caucus Co-chairs Susan Collins (R-ME) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH). Senators Collins and Shaheen have been incredible allies of the T1D community and JDRF for years. We are grateful for their tremendous leadership and partnership on this important issue.”
“The Endocrine Society is thrilled that Congress has reauthorized the Special Diabetes Program. We greatly appreciate the leadership of Senator Collins and Senator Shaheen to ensure that more funds are dedicated to type 1 diabetes research and type 2 diabetes prevention, education, and treatment programs for indigenous communities,” said Endocrine Society Chief Medical Officer Dr. Robert W. Lash. “Diabetes is a chronic disease that affects millions of Americans, and the Special Diabetes Program supports important work to improve public health.”
For more than 25 years, the Special Diabetes Program – comprised of the Special Statutory Funding Program for Type 1 Diabetes Research and the Special Diabetes Program for Indians (SDPI) – has delivered meaningful resources and research breakthroughs for those with Type 1 diabetes and also for Native Americans and Alaska Natives. Congress has reauthorized the SDP with bipartisan support numerous times since the program’s inception in 1997, yet funding has remained flat since fiscal year 2004. During this time period, the cost of research has increased, as has the size of the Indian Health Service population and the cost of medical care.
As a co-chair of the Senate Diabetes Caucus, Senator Collins has worked to increase awareness of the threats posed by diabetes, invest in research, and improve access to treatment options. Last May, Senators Collins and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) led a bipartisan letter to Senate leadership emphasizing the importance of SDP that was signed by a total of 60 Senators. In June, Senators Collins and Shaheen introduced legislation to reauthorize the program. The Special Diabetes Program Reauthorization Act of 2023, which proposed a funding increase for both components of the SDP, advanced out of the Senate Health Committee in June by a 20-1 vote. Senator Collins also chaired the JDRF Children’s Congress in July to highlight the need to reauthorize the SDP before program funding expired in September 2023. Prior to securing the increase in the March 8th package, Senator Collins secured extensions of the SDP and SDP-I in past continuing resolutions to ensure the program continued uninterrupted.
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